Return-Path: judge-owner at synchro.com Received: from srvr22.engin.umich.edu (root at srvr22.engin.umich.edu [141.212.2.35]) by srvr5.engin.umich.edu (8.8.8/8.8.8) with ESMTP id CAA02525 for ; Sat, 25 Jul 1998 02:01:25 -0400 (EDT) Received: from synchro.com (cccox.ne.mediaone.net [24.128.144.90]) by srvr22.engin.umich.edu (8.8.8/8.8.8) with SMTP id CAA07913 for ; Sat, 25 Jul 1998 02:01:20 -0400 (EDT) From: "JudgeNet - the beer judge digest" To: "Digest Recipients" Reply-To: "JudgeNet - the beer judge digest" Subject: Digest for the period 7/24/98 - 7/25/98 Message-ID: Date: Sat, 25 Jul 1998 02:00:07 -0400 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Hops: 1 Table of contents ------------------------------------------------------ Beer styles/judge education (Larry M Matthews) Welcome Back! (RussWig at aol.com) Morning Message (Michael Rasmussen) -------------------------------------------------------- From: Larry M Matthews Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:02:24 -0400 Subject: Beer styles/judge education First, I would like to thank Pat, Karl, and all others that assisted with the judgenet format while Chuck's server was being repaired and upgraded. Secondly, I would like to commend Jeff for his recent comments on CAP (Classic American Pilsener) and the references that came today. His comments were as closely tied to his frustration on his evaluation of his beer as it was to a lack of judge knowledge of the style. Jeff's approach to producing additional information on this style was great. Within the last several months, we have jumped all around the idea of style certification for judges but have never had concrete proposals on how to proceed. I am not as concerned about ever receiving a certificate to hang on the wall as I am in providing an avenue for continued growth in the art of brewing and judging great beers. The styles issue just gives me a framework for doing both. We now have HBD which runs the full gamut of beer and includes brewers from beginners to veterans of over 20 years. Judgenet provides an avenue for some constructive AHA and even BJCP bashing along with competition announcements and great ideas for organizers. ATIB has had little activity lately but has offered an avenue for discussion on a varied assortment of higher level brewing concerns. With the move back to Chuck's listserve for Judgenet, I would like us to consider a trial program that could serve brewers and judges who want to concentrate on improving their knowledge of a beer style from both a brewing and judging point of view. Whether this develops into a certification program or not remains to be seen but it could result in some improvement in our knowledge and the dissemination of our knowledge to others in an organized manner. My proposal is this. Establish a listserve that deals exclusively with a rotating program of discussions on beer styles. A calendar would be planned for a complete year that limits discussion to two weeks for each style. Within a calendar year, we could discuss 26 beer styles. Each Monday of a new cycle, we could post the basics of that style with both AHA and BJCP parameters. A list of known articles, books, or discussions on HBD could be referenced. If known, recipes of that style from both commercial or your own could be presented. The discussion would center on the history of the style, brewing considerations, and then evaluation of the finished beer. I know, it sounds like we may be setting up an online BJCP class. In fact, we are. Hopefully, the level of discussion and the references produced would be very strong. I would hope that it would encourage all participants to brew this style beer, purchase a book on the style, or organize your thoughts on this style in an efficient manner. At the end of the discussion, a concise compendium of the two weeks could be published or placed on the BJCP website. This would aide all future judges who wanted to approach their study for the test in a styles oriented manner. If there is some interest in this proposal or suggestions on expansion or improvement, please email me directly or through judgenet. I would hope someone with a listserve and an interest in pursuing this idea would step forward (Are you listening Karl and Pat?). Each style could have a moderator to lead (but not control) the discussion. Your tour of duty would then be only two weeks. Jeff could lead us in a thorough review of CAP, maybe Garrett Oliver or Thom Tomlinson could assist with IPA's, George Fix on Oktoberfest... You get the picture. What do I get out of this? A chance to improve my knowledge of brewing a beer style and a better basis upon which to volunteer to judge this style at the next competition. In the end, it is a win-win situation for brewers who want to take the BJCP test and for those like me who may want to retake the test and move from the 80's to the 90's. Either way, the BJCP and homebrewing community in general are benefited. The floor is now open! Larry M Matthews Carboy/Trub Member Raleigh, NC 27606 lmatt at ipass.net -------------------------------------------------------- From: RussWig at aol.com Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:43:47 EDT Subject: Welcome Back! Hi all! I thought it might be nice to get the revised JudgeNet off to a start with a brief message from Portland. The Judging is over as are most of the presentations. Winners are revealed later today at the Expo so I can't post any names yet. The conference has gone well so far. here has been a lot of talk between the AHA and the BJCP judges concerning greater interaction and support so it looks like we're on track. The presentations have been interesting and the beer has been ample and tasty. Fred's roasting was a blast with Byron Burch leading the pack with a very well presented walk down memory lane wherein he did not pull any punches. Tom Dalldorf also had a few good jabs to get in and of course Fred got his chance to rebutt. Hat's off to Fred if we aren't patting him on the back we're drinking him, thanks to Hair Of The Dog Brewing. Oregon Brewers Dinner was a blast. Lots of wonderful beer and food. A perfect warm up for the next few days of standing in lines to get a sample of the best there is to offer. NEWS FLASH: Anchor is releasing Small Beer made from the 2nd runnings of the Foghorn mash. I have seen the artwork but not had a taste. There wasn't any available yet to bring to the festival but distributers are getting samples next week. Word from the brewers is it is about 2.8% but tasty. I'll let you know more when I get back to SF and hit the tap room for a sample. Could this be the beginning of a counter revolution? We could certainly use some good session beers in the States. Well I am off to the conference for the final day. Once again, welcome back to all. RW... Russ Wigglesworth BJCP Program Administrator -------------------------------------------------------- From: Michael Rasmussen Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 08:24:45 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Morning Message I have a fortune cookie program that mails me a quote every morning. Sometimes the program appears psychic. Like this morning when it said to me: I will not drink! But if I do... I will not get drunk! But if I do... I will not in public! But if I do... I will not fall down! But if I do... I will fall face down so that they cannot see my company badge. I hope to see all of you at the Oregon Brewers Festival this weekend. -- mikeraz - The patch.com head brewer and dog Better a brewer than a banker be. Return-Path: judge-owner at synchro.com Received: from srvr22.engin.umich.edu (root at srvr22.engin.umich.edu [141.212.2.35]) by srvr5.engin.umich.edu (8.8.8/8.8.8) with ESMTP id CAA02525 for ; Sat, 25 Jul 1998 02:01:25 -0400 (EDT) Received: from synchro.com (cccox.ne.mediaone.net [24.128.144.90]) by srvr22.engin.umich.edu (8.8.8/8.8.8) with SMTP id CAA07913 for ; Sat, 25 Jul 1998 02:01:20 -0400 (EDT) From: "JudgeNet - the beer judge digest" To: "Digest Recipients" Reply-To: "JudgeNet - the beer judge digest" Subject: Digest for the period 7/24/98 - 7/25/98 Message-ID: Date: Sat, 25 Jul 1998 02:00:07 -0400 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Hops: 1 Table of contents ------------------------------------------------------ Beer styles/judge education (Larry M Matthews) Welcome Back! (RussWig at aol.com) Morning Message (Michael Rasmussen) -------------------------------------------------------- From: Larry M Matthews Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:02:24 -0400 Subject: Beer styles/judge education First, I would like to thank Pat, Karl, and all others that assisted with the judgenet format while Chuck's server was being repaired and upgraded. Secondly, I would like to commend Jeff for his recent comments on CAP (Classic American Pilsener) and the references that came today. His comments were as closely tied to his frustration on his evaluation of his beer as it was to a lack of judge knowledge of the style. Jeff's approach to producing additional information on this style was great. Within the last several months, we have jumped all around the idea of style certification for judges but have never had concrete proposals on how to proceed. I am not as concerned about ever receiving a certificate to hang on the wall as I am in providing an avenue for continued growth in the art of brewing and judging great beers. The styles issue just gives me a framework for doing both. We now have HBD which runs the full gamut of beer and includes brewers from beginners to veterans of over 20 years. Judgenet provides an avenue for some constructive AHA and even BJCP bashing along with competition announcements and great ideas for organizers. ATIB has had little activity lately but has offered an avenue for discussion on a varied assortment of higher level brewing concerns. With the move back to Chuck's listserve for Judgenet, I would like us to consider a trial program that could serve brewers and judges who want to concentrate on improving their knowledge of a beer style from both a brewing and judging point of view. Whether this develops into a certification program or not remains to be seen but it could result in some improvement in our knowledge and the dissemination of our knowledge to others in an organized manner. My proposal is this. Establish a listserve that deals exclusively with a rotating program of discussions on beer styles. A calendar would be planned for a complete year that limits discussion to two weeks for each style. Within a calendar year, we could discuss 26 beer styles. Each Monday of a new cycle, we could post the basics of that style with both AHA and BJCP parameters. A list of known articles, books, or discussions on HBD could be referenced. If known, recipes of that style from both commercial or your own could be presented. The discussion would center on the history of the style, brewing considerations, and then evaluation of the finished beer. I know, it sounds like we may be setting up an online BJCP class. In fact, we are. Hopefully, the level of discussion and the references produced would be very strong. I would hope that it would encourage all participants to brew this style beer, purchase a book on the style, or organize your thoughts on this style in an efficient manner. At the end of the discussion, a concise compendium of the two weeks could be published or placed on the BJCP website. This would aide all future judges who wanted to approach their study for the test in a styles oriented manner. If there is some interest in this proposal or suggestions on expansion or improvement, please email me directly or through judgenet. I would hope someone with a listserve and an interest in pursuing this idea would step forward (Are you listening Karl and Pat?). Each style could have a moderator to lead (but not control) the discussion. Your tour of duty would then be only two weeks. Jeff could lead us in a thorough review of CAP, maybe Garrett Oliver or Thom Tomlinson could assist with IPA's, George Fix on Oktoberfest... You get the picture. What do I get out of this? A chance to improve my knowledge of brewing a beer style and a better basis upon which to volunteer to judge this style at the next competition. In the end, it is a win-win situation for brewers who want to take the BJCP test and for those like me who may want to retake the test and move from the 80's to the 90's. Either way, the BJCP and homebrewing community in general are benefited. The floor is now open! Larry M Matthews Carboy/Trub Member Raleigh, NC 27606 lmatt at ipass.net -------------------------------------------------------- From: RussWig at aol.com Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 10:43:47 EDT Subject: Welcome Back! Hi all! I thought it might be nice to get the revised JudgeNet off to a start with a brief message from Portland. The Judging is over as are most of the presentations. Winners are revealed later today at the Expo so I can't post any names yet. The conference has gone well so far. here has been a lot of talk between the AHA and the BJCP judges concerning greater interaction and support so it looks like we're on track. The presentations have been interesting and the beer has been ample and tasty. Fred's roasting was a blast with Byron Burch leading the pack with a very well presented walk down memory lane wherein he did not pull any punches. Tom Dalldorf also had a few good jabs to get in and of course Fred got his chance to rebutt. Hat's off to Fred if we aren't patting him on the back we're drinking him, thanks to Hair Of The Dog Brewing. Oregon Brewers Dinner was a blast. Lots of wonderful beer and food. A perfect warm up for the next few days of standing in lines to get a sample of the best there is to offer. NEWS FLASH: Anchor is releasing Small Beer made from the 2nd runnings of the Foghorn mash. I have seen the artwork but not had a taste. There wasn't any available yet to bring to the festival but distributers are getting samples next week. Word from the brewers is it is about 2.8% but tasty. I'll let you know more when I get back to SF and hit the tap room for a sample. Could this be the beginning of a counter revolution? We could certainly use some good session beers in the States. Well I am off to the conference for the final day. Once again, welcome back to all. RW... Russ Wigglesworth BJCP Program Administrator -------------------------------------------------------- From: Michael Rasmussen Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 08:24:45 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Morning Message I have a fortune cookie program that mails me a quote every morning. Sometimes the program appears psychic. Like this morning when it said to me: I will not drink! But if I do... I will not get drunk! But if I do... I will not in public! But if I do... I will not fall down! But if I do... I will fall face down so that they cannot see my company badge. I hope to see all of you at the Oregon Brewers Festival this weekend. -- mikeraz - The patch.com head brewer and dog Better a brewer than a banker be.